Jump starting device with USB

ABSTRACT

A jump starting device having USB. For example, a handheld jump starting device having USB for boosting or charging a depleted or discharged battery. The handheld jump starting device, for example, can include a rechargeable lithium ion battery pack and a microcontroller. The lithium ion battery can be coupled to a power output port of the device through a power switch circuit actuated by the microcontroller.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates generally to apparatus for jump-starting avehicle having a depleted or discharged battery.

BACKGROUND TO THE INVENTION

Prior art devices are known for jump-starting a vehicle, which provideeither a pair of electrical connector cables that connect afully-charged battery of another vehicle to the engine start circuit ofthe dead battery vehicle, or portable booster devices which include afully-charged battery which can be connected in circuit with thevehicle's engine starter through a pair of cables.

Problems with the prior art arose when either the jumper terminals orclamps of the cables were inadvertently brought into contact with eachother while the other ends were connected to a charged battery, or whenthe positive and negative terminals were connected to the oppositepolarity terminals in the vehicle to be jumped, thereby causing a shortcircuit resulting in sparking and potential damage to batteries and/orbodily injury.

Various attempts to eliminate these problems have been made in the priorart. U.S. Pat. No. 6,212,054 issued Apr. 3, 2001, discloses a batterybooster pack that is polarity sensitive and can detect proper andimproper connections before providing a path for electric current flow.The device uses a set of LEDs connected to optical couplers oriented bya control circuit. The control circuit controls a solenoid assemblycontrolling the path of power current. The control circuit causes powercurrent to flow through the solenoid assembly only if the points ofcontact of booster cable clamp connections have been properly made.

U.S. Pat. No. 6,632,103 issued Oct. 14, 2003, discloses an adaptivebooster cable connected with two pairs of clips, wherein the two pairsof clips are respectively attached to two batteries to transmit powerfrom one battery to the other battery. The adaptive booster cableincludes a polarity detecting unit connected to each clip, a switchingunit and a current detecting unit both provided between the two pairs ofclips. After the polarity of each clip is sensed by the polaritydetecting unit, the switching unit generates a proper connection betweenthe two batteries. Therefore, the positive and negative terminals of thetwo batteries are correctly connected based on the detected result ofthe polarity detecting unit.

U.S. Pat. No. 8,493,021 issued Jul. 23, 2013, discloses apparatus thatmonitors the voltage of the battery of a vehicle to be jump started andthe current delivered by the jump starter batteries to determine if aproper connection has been established and to provide fault monitoring.Only if the proper polarity is detected can the system operate. Thevoltage is monitored to determine open circuit, disconnected conductiveclamps, shunt cable fault, and solenoid fault conditions. The currentthrough the shunt cable is monitored to determine if there is a batteryexplosion risk, and for excessive current conditions presenting anoverheating condition, which may result in fire. The system includes aninternal battery to provide the power to the battery of the vehicle tobe jump started. Once the vehicle is started, the unit automaticallyelectrically disconnects from the vehicle's battery.

U.S. Pat. No. 5,189,359 issued Feb. 23, 1993, discloses a jumper cabledevice having two bridge rectifiers for developing a reference voltage,a four-input decoder for determining which terminals are to be connectedbased on a comparison of the voltage at each of the four terminals tothe reference voltage, and a pair of relays for effecting the correctconnection depending on the determination of the decoder. No connectionwill be made unless only one terminal of each battery has a highervoltage than the reference voltage, indicating “positive” terminals, andone has a lower voltage than the reference voltage, indicating“negative” terminals, and that, therefore, the two high voltageterminals may be connected and the two lower voltage terminals may beconnected. Current flows once the appropriate relay device is closed.The relay device is preferably a MOSFET combined with a series array ofphotodiodes that develop MOSFET gate-closing potential when the decoderoutput causes an LED to light.

U.S. Pat. No. 5,795,182 issued Aug. 18, 1998, discloses a polarityindependent set of battery jumper cables for jumping a first battery toa second battery. The apparatus includes a relative polarity detectorfor detecting whether two batteries are configured cross or parallel. Athree-position high current capacity crossbar pivot switch is responsiveto the relative polarity detector for automatically connecting the plusterminals of the two batteries together and the minus terminals of thetwo batteries together regardless of whether the configuration detectedis cross or parallel, and an undercurrent detector and a delay circuitfor returning the device to its ready and unconnected state after thedevice has been disconnected from one of the batteries. The crossbarpivot switch includes two pairs of contacts, and a pivot arm that pivotsabout two separate points to ensure full electrical contact between thepairs of contacts. The invention can also be used to produce a batterycharger that may be connected to a battery without regard to thepolarity of the battery.

U.S. Pat. No. 6,262,492 issued Jul. 17, 2001, discloses a car batteryjumper cable for accurately coupling an effective power source to afailed or not charged battery, which includes a relay switching circuitconnected to the power source and the battery by two current conductorpairs. First and second voltage polarity recognition circuits arerespectively connected to the power source and the battery by arespective voltage conductor pair to recognize the polarity of the powersource and the battery. A logic recognition circuit produces a controlsignal subject to the polarity of the power source and the battery, anda driving circuit controlled by the control signal from the logicrecognition circuit drives the relay switching circuit, enabling the twopoles of the power source to be accurately coupled to the two poles ofthe battery.

U.S. Pat. No. 5,635,817 issued Jun. 3, 1997, discloses a vehicle batterycharging device that includes a control housing having cables includinga current limiting device to prevent exceeding of a predeterminedmaximum charging current of about 40 to 60 amps. The control housingincludes a polarity detecting device to verify the correct polarity ofthe connection of the terminals of the two batteries and to electricallydisconnect the two batteries if there is an incorrect polarity.

U.S. Pat. No. 8,199,024 issued Jun. 12, 2012, discloses a safety circuitin a low-voltage connecting system that leaves the two low-voltagesystems disconnected until it determines that it is safe to make aconnection. When the safety circuit determines that no unsafe conditionsexist and that it is safe to connect the two low-voltage systems, thesafety circuit may connect the two systems by way of a “soft start” thatprovides a connection between the two systems over a period of time thatreduces or prevents inductive voltage spikes on one or more of thelow-voltage systems. When one of the low-voltage systems has acompletely-discharged battery incorporated into it, a method is used fordetection of proper polarity of the connections between the low-voltagesystems. The polarity of the discharged battery is determined by passingone or more test currents through it and determining whether acorresponding voltage rise is observed.

U.S. Pat. No. 5,793,185 issued Aug. 11, 1998, discloses a handheld jumpstarter having control components and circuits to prevent overchargingand incorrect connection to batteries.

While the prior art attempted solutions to the abovementioned problemsas discussed above, each of the prior art solutions suffers from othershortcomings, either in complexity, cost or potential for malfunction.Accordingly, there exists a need in the art for further improvements tovehicle jump start devices.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

In accordance with an aspect of the invention, an apparatus is providedfor jump starting a vehicle engine, comprising: an internal powersupply; an output port having positive and negative polarity outputs; avehicle battery isolation sensor connected in circuit with said positiveand negative polarity outputs, configured to detect presence of avehicle battery connected between said positive and negative polarityoutputs; a reverse polarity sensor connected in circuit with saidpositive and negative polarity outputs, configured to detect polarity ofa vehicle battery connected between said positive and negative polarityoutputs and to provide an output signal indicating whether positive andnegative terminals of said vehicle battery are properly connected withsaid positive and negative polarity outputs of said output port; a powerswitch connected between said internal power supply and said outputport; and a microcontroller configured to receive input signals fromsaid vehicle isolation sensor and said reverse polarity sensor, and toprovide an output signal to said power switch, such that said powerswitch is turned on to cause said internal power supply to be connectedto said output port in response to signals from said sensors indicatingthe presence of a vehicle battery at said output port and properpolarity connection of positive and negative terminals of said vehiclebattery with said positive and negative polarity outputs, and is notturned on when signals from said sensors indicate either the absence ofa vehicle battery at said output port or improper polarity connection ofpositive and negative terminals of said vehicle battery with saidpositive and negative polarity outputs.

In accordance with an embodiment of the invention, the internal powersupply is a rechargeable lithium ion battery pack.

A jumper cable device may also be provided, having a plug configured toplug into said output port; a pair of cables integrated with the plug atone respective end thereof; said pair of cables being configured to beseparately connected to terminals of a battery at another respective endthereof.

Comprises/comprising and grammatical variations thereof when used inthis specification are to be taken to specify the presence of statedfeatures, integers, steps or components or groups thereof, but do notpreclude the presence or addition of one or more other features,integers, steps, components or groups thereof.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a functional block diagram of a handheld vehicle battery boostapparatus in accordance with one aspect of the present invention;

FIGS. 2A-2C are schematic circuit diagrams of an example embodiment of ahandheld vehicle battery boost apparatus in accordance with an aspect ofthe invention;

FIG. 3 is a perspective view of a handheld jump starter booster devicein accordance with one example embodiment of the invention; and

FIG. 4 is a plan view of a jumper cable usable with the handheld jumpstarter booster device in accordance with another aspect of theinvention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

FIG. 1 is a functional block diagram of a handheld battery boosteraccording to one aspect of the invention. At the heart of the handheldbattery booster is a lithium polymer battery pack 32, which storessufficient energy to jump start a vehicle engine served by aconventional 12 volt lead-acid or valve regulated lead-acid battery. Inone example embodiment, a high-surge lithium polymer battery packincludes three 3.7V, 2666 mAh lithium polymer batteries in a 3S1Pconfiguration. The resulting battery pack provides 11.1V, 2666 Ah (8000Ah at 3.7V, 29.6 Wh). Continuous discharge current is 25C (or 200 amps),and burst discharge current is 50C (or 400 amps). The maximum chargingcurrent of the battery pack is 8000 mA (8 amps).

A programmable microcontroller unit (MCU) 1 receives various inputs andproduces informational as well as control outputs. The programmable MCU1 further provides flexibility to the system by allowing updates infunctionality and system parameters, without requiring any change inhardware. According to one example embodiment, an 8 bit microcontrollerwith 2K×15 bits of flash memory is used to control the system. One suchmicrocontroller is the HT67F30, which is commercially available fromHoltek Semiconductor Inc.

A car battery reverse sensor 10 monitors the polarity of the vehiclebattery 72 when the handheld battery booster device is connected to thevehicle's electric system. As explained below, the booster deviceprevents the lithium battery pack from being connected to the vehiclebattery 72 when the terminals of the battery 72 are connected to thewrong terminals of the booster device. A car battery isolation sensor 12detects whether or not a vehicle battery 72 is connected to the boosterdevice, and prevents the lithium battery pack from being connected tothe output terminals of the booster device unless there is a good (e.g.chargeable) battery connected to the output terminals.

A smart switch FET circuit 15 electrically switches the handheld batterybooster lithium battery to the vehicle's electric system only when thevehicle battery is determined by the MCU 1 to be present (in response toa detection signal provided by isolation sensor 12) and connected withthe correct polarity (in response to a detection signal provided byreverse sensor 10). A lithium battery temperature sensor 20 monitors thetemperature of the lithium battery pack 32 to detect overheating due tohigh ambient temperature conditions and overextended current draw duringjump starting. A lithium battery voltage measurement circuit 24 monitorsthe voltage of the lithium battery pack 32 to prevent the voltagepotential from rising too high during a charging operation and fromdropping too low during a discharge operation.

Lithium battery back-charge protection diodes 28 prevent any chargecurrent being delivered to the vehicle battery 72 from flowing back tothe lithium battery pack 32 from the vehicle's electrical system.Flashlight LED circuit 36 is provided to furnish a flashlight functionfor enhancing light under a vehicle's hood in dark conditions, as wellas providing SOS and strobe lighting functions for safety purposes whena vehicle may be disabled in a potentially dangerous location. Voltageregulator 42 provides regulation of internal operating voltage for themicrocontroller and sensors. On/Off manual mode and flashlight switches46 allow the user to control power-on for the handheld battery boosterdevice, to control manual override operation if the vehicle has nobattery, and to control the flashlight function. The manual buttonfunctions only when the booster device is powered on. This button allowsthe user to jump-start vehicles that have either a missing battery, orthe battery voltage is so low that automatic detection by the MCU is notpossible. When the user presses and holds the manual override button fora predetermined period time (such as three seconds) to preventinadvertent actuation of the manual mode, the internal lithium ionbattery power is switched to the vehicle battery connect port. The onlyexception to the manual override is if the car battery is connected inreverse. If the car battery is connected in reverse, the internallithium battery power shall never be switched to the vehicle batteryconnect port.

USB charge circuit 52 converts power from any USB charger power source,to charge voltage and current for charging the lithium battery pack 32.USB output 56 provides a USB portable charger for charging smartphones,tablets, and other rechargeable electronic devices. Operation indicatorLEDs 60 provide visual indication of lithium battery capacity status aswell as an indication of smart switch activation status (indicating thatpower is being provided to the vehicle's electrical system).

Detailed operation of the handheld booster device will now be describedwith reference to the schematic diagrams of FIGS. 2A-2C. As shown inFIG. 2A, the microcontroller unit 1 is the center of all inputs andoutputs. The reverse battery sensor 10 comprises an optically coupledisolator phototransistor (4N27) connected to the terminals of vehiclebattery 72 at input pins 1 and 2 with a diode D8 in the lead conductorof pin 1 (associated with the negative terminal CB−), such that if thebattery 72 is connected to the terminals of the booster device with thecorrect polarity, the optocoupler LED 11 will not conduct current, andis therefore turned off, providing a “1” or high output signal to theMCU 1. The car battery isolation sensor 12 comprises an opticallycoupled isolator phototransistor (4N27) connected to the terminals ofvehicle battery 72 at input pins 1 and 2 with a diode D7 in the leadconductor of pin 1 (associated with the positive terminal CB+), suchthat if the battery 72 is connected to the terminals of the boosterdevice with the correct polarity, the optocoupler LED 11A will conductcurrent, and is therefore turned on, providing a “0” or low outputsignal to the MCU, indicating the presence of a battery across thejumper output terminals of the handheld booster device.

If the car battery 72 is connected to the handheld booster device withreverse polarity, the optocoupler LED 11 of the reverse sensor 10 willconduct current, providing a “0” or low signal to microcontroller unit1. Further, if no battery is connected to the handheld booster device,the optocoupler LED 11A of the isolation sensor 12 will not conductcurrent, and is therefore turned off, providing a “1” or high outputsignal to the MCU, indicating the absence of any battery connected tothe handheld booster device. Using these specific inputs, themicrocontroller software of MCU 1 can determine when it is safe to turnon the smart switch FET 15, thereby connecting the lithium battery packto the jumper terminals of the booster device. Consequently, if the carbattery 72 either is not connected to the booster device at all, or isconnected with reverse polarity, the MCU 1 can keep the smart switch FET15 from being turned on, thus prevent sparking/short circuiting of thelithium battery pack.

As shown in FIG. 2B, the FET smart switch 15 is driven by an output ofthe microcontroller 1. The FET smart switch 15 includes three FETs (Q15,Q18, and Q19) in parallel, which spreads the distribution of power fromthe lithium battery pack over the FETs. When that microcontroller outputis driven to a logic low, FETs 16 are all in a high resistance state,therefore not allowing current to flow from the internal lithium batterynegative contact 17 to the car battery 72 negative contact. When themicrocontroller output is driven to a logic high, the FETs 16 (Q15, Q18,and Q19) are in a low resistant state, allowing current to flow freelyfrom the internal lithium battery pack negative contact 17 (LB−) to thecar battery 72 negative contact (CB−). In this way, the microcontrollersoftware controls the connection of the internal lithium battery pack 32to the vehicle battery 72 for jumpstarting the car engine.

Referring back to FIG. 2A, the internal lithium battery pack voltage canbe accurately measured using circuit 24 and one of the analog-to-digitalinputs of the microcontroller 1. Circuit 24 is designed to sense whenthe main 3.3V regulator 42 voltage is on, and to turn on transistor 23when the voltage of regulator 42 is on. When transistor 23 isconducting, it turns on FET 22, thereby providing positive contact (LB+)of the internal lithium battery a conductive path to voltage divider 21allowing a lower voltage range to be brought to the microcontroller tobe read. Using this input, the microcontroller software can determine ifthe lithium battery voltage is too low during discharge operation or toohigh during charge operation, and take appropriate action to preventdamage to electronic components.

Still referring to FIG. 2A, the temperature of the internal lithiumbattery pack 32 can be accurately measured by two negative temperaturecoefficient (NTC) devices 20. These are devices that reduce theirresistance when their temperature rises. The circuit is a voltagedivider that brings the result to two analog-to-digital (A/D) inputs onthe microcontroller 1. The microcontroller software can then determinewhen the internal lithium battery is too hot to allow jumpstarting,adding safety to the design.

The main voltage regulator circuit 42 is designed to convert internallithium battery voltage to a regulated 3.3 volts that is utilized by themicrocontroller 1 as well as by other components of the booster devicefor internal operating power. Three lithium battery back chargeprotection diodes 28 (see FIG. 2B) are in place to allow current to flowonly from the internal lithium battery pack 32 to the car battery 72,and not from the car battery to the internal lithium battery. In thisway, if the car electrical system is charging from its alternator, itcannot back-charge (and thereby damage) the internal lithium battery,providing another level of safety.

The main power on switch 46 (FIG. 2A) is a combination that allows fordouble pole, double throw operation so that with one push, the productcan be turned on if it is in the off state, or turned off if it is inthe on state. This circuit also uses a microcontroller output 47 to“keep alive” the power when it is activated by the on switch. When theswitch is pressed the microcontroller turns this output to a high logiclevel to keep power on when the switch is released. In this way, themicrocontroller maintains control of when the power is turned off whenthe on/off switch is activated again or when the lithium battery voltageis getting too low. The microcontroller software also includes a timerthat turns the power off after a predefined period of time, (such as,e.g. 8 hours) if not used.

The flashlight LED circuit 45 shown in FIG. 2B controls the operation offlashlight LEDs. Two outputs from the microcontroller 1 are dedicated totwo separate LEDs. Thus, the LEDs can be independentlysoftware-controlled for strobe and SOS patterns, providing yet anothersafety feature to the booster device. LED indicators provide thefeedback the operator needs to understand what is happening with theproduct. Four separate LEDs 61 (FIG. 2A) are controlled by correspondingindividual outputs of microcontroller 1 to provide indication of theremaining capacity of the internal lithium battery. These LEDs arecontrolled in a “fuel gauge” type format with 25%, 50%, 75% and 100%(red, red, yellow, green) capacity indications. An LED indicator 63(FIG. 2B) provides a visual warning to the user when the vehicle battery72 has been connected in reverse polarity. “Boost” and on/off LEDs 62provide visual indications when the booster device is provide jump-startpower, and when the booster device is turned on, respectively.

A USB output 56 circuit (FIG. 2C) is included to provide a USB outputfor charging portable electronic devices such as smartphones from theinternal lithium battery pack 32. Control circuit 57 from themicrocontroller 1 allows the USB Out 56 to be turned on and off bysoftware control to prevent the internal lithium battery getting too lowin capacity. The USB output is brought to the outside of the device on astandard USB connector 58, which includes the standard voltage dividerrequired for enabling charge to certain smartphones that require it.

The USB charge circuit 52 allows the internal lithium battery pack 32 tobe charged using a standard USB charger. This charge input uses astandard micro-USB connector 48 allowing standard cables to be used. The5V potential provided from standard USB chargers is up-converted to the12.4 VDC voltage required for charging the internal lithium battery packusing a DC-DC converter 49. The DC-DC converter 49 can be turned on andoff via circuit 53 by an output from the microcontroller 1.

In this way, the microcontroller software can turn the charge off if thebattery voltage is measured to be too high by the A/D input 22.Additional safety is provided for helping to eliminate overcharge to theinternal lithium battery using a lithium battery charge controller 50that provides charge balance to the internal lithium battery cells 51.This controller also provides safety redundancy for eliminating overdischarge of the internal lithium battery.

FIG. 3 is a perspective view of a handheld device 300 in accordance withan exemplary embodiment of the invention. 301 is a power on switch. 302shows the LED “fuel gauge” indicators 61. 303 shows a 12 volt outputport connectable to a cable device 400, described further below. 304shows a flashlight control switch for activating flashlight LEDs 45. 305is a USB input port for charging the internal lithium battery, and 306is a USB output port for providing charge from the lithium battery toother portable devices such as smartphones, tablets, music players, etc.307 is a “boost on” indicator showing that power is being provided tothe 12V output port. 308 is a “reverse” indicator showing that thevehicle battery is improperly connected with respect to polarity. 309 isa “power on” indicator showing that the device is powered up foroperation.

FIG. 4 shows a jumper cable device 400 specifically designed for usewith the handheld device 300. Device 400 has a plug 401 configured toplug into 12 volt output port 303 of the handheld device 300. A pair ofcables 402 a and 402 b are integrated with the plug 401, and arerespectively connected to battery terminal clamps 403 a and 403 b viaring terminals 404 a and 404 b. The port 303 and plug 401 may bedimensioned so that the plug 401 will only fit into the port 303 in aspecific orientation, thus ensuring that clamp 403 a will correspond topositive polarity, and clamp 403 b will correspond to negative polarity,as indicated thereon. Additionally, the ring terminals 404 a and 404 bmay be disconnected from the clamps and connected directly to theterminals of a vehicle battery. This feature may be useful, for example,to permanently attach the cables 302 a-302 b to the battery of avehicle. In the event that the battery voltage becomes depleted, thehandheld booster device 300 could be properly connected to the batteryvery simply by plugging in the plug 401 to the port 303.

The invention having been thus described, it will be apparent to thoseskilled in the art that the same may be varied in many ways withoutdeparting from the spirit or scope of the invention. Any and all suchvariations are intended to be encompassed within the scope of thefollowing claims.

The invention claimed is:
 1. A jump starting device for boosting orcharging a depleted or discharged battery having a positive batteryterminal and a negative battery terminal, the jump starting devicecomprising: a power supply; a positive battery connector forelectrically connecting the jump starting device to the positive batteryterminal of the depleted or discharged battery; a negative batteryconnector for electrically connecting the jump starting device to thenegative battery terminal of the depleted or discharged battery; a powerswitch or switch circuit connected in circuit with the power supply andthe positive and negative battery connectors, the power switch or switchcircuit configured to switch power on from the power supply to boost orcharge the depleted or discharged battery when connected between thepositive and negative battery connectors; a USB input connector; and aUSB charge circuit electrically connecting the USB input connector tothe power supply, the USB charge circuit comprising a DC-DC converterconfigured to upconvert voltage from the USB input connector to thepower supply.
 2. The device according to claim 1, wherein the powerswitch or switch circuit is controlled to turn on power to the depletedor discharged battery only when the jump starting device is connectedwith correct polarity to the depleted or discharged battery.
 3. Thedevice according to claim 1, wherein the power supply is an internalpower supply.
 4. The device according to claim 1, wherein the USBcharging circuit and power supply are located within the jump startingdevice.
 5. The device according to claim 4, wherein the DC-DC converteris one or more DC-DC converters.
 6. The device according to claim 1,wherein the DC-DC converter is configured to convert about 5 VDC fromthe USB input connector to at least 11.1 VDC for the power supply whenan active USB power source is connected to the USB input connector. 7.The device according to claim 6, wherein the USB charger power source isa USB charger, and the USB charging circuit is configured to convertpower from the USB charger to charge voltage and current for supplyingpower or charging the power supply.
 8. The device according to claim 6,wherein the USB charging source is a USB charger.
 9. The deviceaccording to claim 8, wherein the USB charger is a standard USB charger.10. The device according to claim 1, wherein the DC-DC converter isconfigured to be turned on and off via a circuit by an output from amicrocontroller.
 11. The device according to claim 10, wherein the powersupply is a rechargeable battery, and wherein the microcontrollersoftware can turn charge off if the rechargeable battery voltage ismeasured to be too high by an A/D input.
 12. The device according toclaim 11, wherein the rechargeable battery is a rechargeable lithiumbattery, and further comprising a rechargeable lithium battery chargecontroller configured to provide charge balance to internal lithiumbattery cells of the rechargeable lithium battery.
 13. The deviceaccording to claim 12, wherein the rechargeable lithium battery chargecontroller is also configured to provide safety redundancy foreliminating over discharge of the rechargeable lithium battery.
 14. Thedevice according to claim 1, wherein the USB input connector is amicro-USB connector.
 15. The device according to claim 1, furthercomprising a USB output connector for providing a power output from thepower supply to a USB-chargeable device.
 16. The device according toclaim 15, wherein the USB output connector at least partially defines aUSB output port.
 17. The device according to claim 15, wherein the USBoutput connector is electrically connected to a USB output circuit, theUSB output circuit connecting the power supply to the USB outputconnector.
 18. The device according to claim 17, further comprising amicrocontroller with a control circuit, the control circuit for themicrocontroller allows the USB output circuit to be turned on and off bysoftware control to prevent the power supply getting too low incapacity.
 19. The device according to claim 17, wherein the USB outputconnector and the USB output circuit define a USB output port.
 20. Thedevice according to claim 19, wherein the USB output port is configuredto provide a portable charger for charging smartphones, tablets, musicplayers, and other rechargeable electronic devices.
 21. The deviceaccording to claim 19, wherein the USB output port is accessible fromoutside of the jump charge device using the USB output connector. 22.The device according to claim 21, wherein the USB connector includes avoltage divider configured to enable charge to certain smartphones thatrequire the voltage divider.
 23. The device according to claim 1,wherein the power supply is a rechargeable battery disposed within thejump starting device.
 24. The device according to claim 1, wherein thepower switch or switch circuit comprises at least one power switch orswitch circuit configured to turn power on from the power supply to thedepleted or discharged battery when connected to the positive andnegative battery connectors.
 25. The device according to claim 24,wherein the power switch or switch circuit comprises one or more sensorsconfigured to detect whether the positive and negative batteryconnectors are properly connected to the depleted or discharged batteryprior to switching on the power switch or switch circuit.
 26. The deviceaccording to claim 25, wherein the power switch or switch circuit isconfigured to detect presence of the depleted or discharged battery whenconnected between the positive and negative battery connectors.
 27. Thedevice according to claim 25, wherein the power switch or switch circuitis configured to detect polarity of the depleted or discharged batterywhen connected between the positive and negative battery connectors. 28.The device according to claim 25, wherein the power switch or switchcircuit is configured to detect presence of the depleted or dischargedbattery when connected between the positive and negative batteryconnectors, and configured to detect polarity of the depleted ordischarged battery when connected between the positive and negativebattery connectors, wherein the power switch or switch circuit switcheson the power supply to connect the power supply to the depleted ordischarged battery only when the depleted or discharged battery ispresent when connected between the positive and negative batteryconnectors and the depleted or discharged battery is connected withcorrect polarity between the positive and negative battery terminals.29. The device according to claim 24, wherein the power switch or switchcircuit comprises a microcontroller configured for providing an outputcontrolling the power switch or switch circuit.
 30. The device accordingto claim 29, wherein the microcontroller receives input from one or moresensors configured to detect presence of the depleted or dischargedbattery when connected between the positive and negative batteryconnectors, and to detect polarity of the depleted or discharged batterywhen connected between the positive and negative battery connectors. 31.The device according to claim 30, wherein the one or more sensorsincludes one sensor configured to detect presence of the depleted ordischarged battery when connected between the positive and negativebattery connectors, and another sensor configured to detect polarity ofthe depleted or discharged battery when connected between the positiveand negative battery connectors.
 32. The device according to claim 31,wherein the one or more sensors is one or more sensing circuits.
 33. Thedevice according to claim 30, wherein the one or more sensors is apresence sensor configured for detecting presence of the depleted ordischarged battery when connected between the positive and negativebattery connectors, and a reverse polarity sensor configured to detectpolarity of a connection of the positive and negative battery connectorsof the jump starting device with the depleted or discharge battery. 34.The device according to claim 33, wherein the presence sensor and thereverse polarity sensor comprise optically coupled isolatorphototransistors.
 35. The device according to claim 33, furthercomprising a manual override switch configured to activate a manualoverride mode to enable a user to connect jump start power to thepositive and negative battery connectors when the one sensor configuredfor detecting presence of the depleted or discharged battery is unableto detect presence of the depleted or discharged battery.
 36. The deviceaccording to claim 35, wherein the microcontroller is configured todetect actuation of the manual override switch for at least apredetermined period of time before activation of the manual overridemode.
 37. The device according to claim 29, wherein the microcontrollerswitches the power switch or switch circuit on to provide power from thepower supply to the depleted or discharged battery only when thedepleted or discharged battery is determined by the microcontroller tobe present and connected with correct polarity to the positive andnegative battery connectors.
 38. The device according to claim 29,wherein the microcontroller is a programmable microcontroller configuredto allow updates in functionality and system parameters.
 39. The deviceaccording to claim 38, wherein the programmable microcontrollercomprises a memory.
 40. The device according to claim 29, furthercomprising a temperature sensor configured to detect temperature of thepower supply and to provide a temperature signal to the microcontroller.41. The device according to claim 29, further comprising a voltagemeasurement circuit configured to measure output voltage of the powersupply and to provide a voltage measurement signal to themicrocontroller.
 42. The device according to claim 1, wherein thepositive battery connector comprises a positive battery cable, and thenegative battery connector comprises a negative battery cable.
 43. Thedevice according to claim 42, wherein the positive battery cablecomprises a positive battery clamp and the negative battery cablecomprises a negative battery clamp.
 44. The device according to claim 1,wherein said power switch or switch circuit comprises a plurality ofFETs in parallel.
 45. The device according to claim 1, furthercomprising a plurality of power diodes coupled between the positive andnegative battery connectors and the power supply to preventback-charging of the power supply from an electrical system connected tothe depleted or discharged battery.
 46. The device according to claim 1,further comprising an output port providing positive and negativepolarity outputs to the positive and negative battery connectors. 47.The device according to claim 1, further comprising a voltage regulatorconfigured to convert output voltage of the power supply to a voltagelevel appropriate to provide operating power to internal components ofthe device.
 48. The device according to claim 1, wherein the positiveand negative battery connectors are defined by a jumper cable deviceincluding a plug configured to plug into an output port of the jumpstarting device, a pair of cables integrated with the plug at onerespective end of the pair of cables and being configured to beconnected to positive and negative battery terminals of the depleted ordischarged battery at an opposite end of the pair of cables.
 49. Thedevice according to claim 48, wherein the output port and the plug aredimensioned so that the plug will fit into the output port only in onespecific orientation.
 50. The device according to claim 1, wherein thepower switch or switch circuit is configured to switch power on onlywhen the jump starting device is properly connected to the depleted ordischarged battery.
 51. The device according to claim 1, wherein thepower supply is a rechargeable lithium battery pack.
 52. The deviceaccording to claim 18, wherein the rechargeable lithium battery pack isan internal power supply.
 53. The device according to claim 18, whereinthe USB charge circuit is configured to convert power from a USB chargerpower source, to charge voltage and current suitable for charging therechargeable lithium battery pack.
 54. The device according to claim 51,further comprising a rechargeable lithium battery pack voltagemeasurement circuit configured to monitor the rechargeable lithiumbattery pack to prevent voltage potential from rising too high during acharging operation and from dropping too low during a dischargeoperation.
 55. The device according to claim 51, further comprising afuel gauge LEDS for indicating a charge level of the rechargeablelithium battery pack.
 56. The device according to claim 1, wherein thepower switch or switch circuit is a smart switch, or comprises a smartswitch.
 57. A jump starting device for boosting or charging a depletedor discharged battery having a positive battery terminal and a negativebattery terminal, the jump starting device comprising: a power supply; apositive battery connector for electrically connecting the jump startingstarter device to the positive battery terminal of the depleted ordischarged battery; a negative battery connector for electricallyconnecting the jump starting starter device to the negative batteryterminal of the depleted or discharged battery; a power switch or switchcircuit in circuit with the power supply and the positive and negativebattery connectors, the power switch or switch circuit configured toswitch power on from the power supply to boost or charge the depleted ordischarged battery when connected between the positive and negativebattery connectors; a USB input connector; a USB charge circuitelectrically connecting the USB input connector to the power supply, theUSB charge circuit configured to up-convert voltage from a USB chargerpower source connected to the USB input connector to the power supplyusing a DC-DC converter; a USB output connector; and a USB outputcircuit electrically connecting the power supply to the USB outputconnector.